1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates generally to conveyor systems and, more particularly, to gravity auxiliary conveyors for transporting containers, such as industrial totes and boxes.
2. Technical Considerations
In many industrial applications, individual parts or components are delivered to a worker at a designated workstation for incorporation into a product. Typically, these parts are delivered in containers or totes. The worker must pick parts from the totes and then attach or incorporate the parts into the product being manufactured. When a tote is empty, it is removed from the workstation to make room for a new tote filled with more parts.
In the past, the totes containing the parts have been placed on the floor at the workstation and the worker had to bend over to pick the parts out of the tote. This can be uncomfortable for the worker to repetitively bend over and straighten up to retrieve the parts from the tote and then attach them to the product. In order to address this problem, auxiliary conveyor systems have been developed which allow the tote to be placed above the floor and at a more convenient angle for the worker to retrieve the parts. One adjustable auxiliary conveyor is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 6,675,946, herein incorporated by reference in its entirety. This auxiliary conveyor allows totes containing the parts to be provided to the worker on one shelf and then the empty totes can be placed on another shelf and returned to the rear of the auxiliary conveyor. This known auxiliary conveyor increases the efficiency of the worker and also reduces physical stress.
While this known auxiliary conveyor is excellent for its intended purpose, improvements could be made to increase the usefulness of the auxiliary conveyor as well as the ease of adjusting the shelf position of the auxiliary conveyor.
Therefore, it would be advantageous to provide an auxiliary conveyor which further improves the versatility of known auxiliary conveyors without adversely complicating the mechanical structure of the conveyor.